Drying and aerating machine.



C. E. & W. M. CLARK 1&1. A. SPARKS.

DRYING AND AERATING MACHINE.

. APPLICATION FILED JUNE 22. 1917. ,278,593.

Patented Sept. 10, 1918.

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c. E. I w. IvI. CLARK A1. A. SPARKS.

DRYING AND AEBATING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED JUNE 22, |911.

1,27,593. Patented se 0,1918;k

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FITS- E l@ @470) (1)46@ (-COC@ vento/r- C. E. & W. IVI. CLARK & J. A.SPARKS. DRYING AND AERATLNG MACHINE. APPLICATIONHLED JUNE 22. |911.

Patented Sept. 10, 1918.

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CHARLES EDWIN CLARK,WILLIAM MOORE CLARK, AND JONAS A. SPARKS, 0FV ELKCITY, KANSAS.

DBV'YING AND AERATING MACHINE.

Application filedV J' une 22, 1917.

To all whom t may concern Be it known that we, CHARLES E. CLARK,lWILLIAM M. CLARK, and JONAS A. SPARKS, citizens of the United` States,residing Yat Elk City, in the county of Montgomery and State of Kansas,have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Drying and-Aerating Machines, ofwhich the following is a specification.

This invention relates to an improved drying and aerating machine andhas as its primary objectY to provide a device adapted for quicklycleaning and drying clothes or other articles of fabric while at thesame time'the clothes will be thoroughly aerated to.

remove therefrom the odors of any cleaning fluids employed.

The invention has as`a further object to provide a construction whereina rotatable basket will be provided for receiving clothes and whereinthe said basket will be equipped with a plurality of fan blades forsetting u p a circulation of fresh air through the device to thuselfectually aerate the clothes placed in the basket.

The invention has as a still further object to provide a condenserthrough which the Other and incidental objects will appear-` as thedescription proceeds and in the drawings wherein we have illustrated thepreferred embodiment of the invention and wherein similar referencecharacters desig- Speaicatn of Letters Patent. `lPafgejntd Sept, 110,jlQ.

Serial No. 176,449.

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary sectional view taken on the line 3 3 of Fig.. 2and illustrating the adjustable journal employed for the lower extremityof the basket shaft,

Fig. 4- is a fragmentary sectional view taken on the line 1 -4 of Fig. 2and illusy trating the adjustable journal employed adjacentthe upperextremity of the basket shaft,

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary sectional view showing the ratchet for rotatingthe basket,

Fig. 6 is a bottom plan view illustrating the brake for the basket, and

Fig. 7 is a plan view showing the basket detached and particularlyillustrating the fan blades carried thereby.

ln carrying out the invention our improved machine is formed with a baseincluding a platform having side sills 10, end sills 11 and 12 and across sill 13 arranged parallel to the end sills. Mounted upon the saidsills is the floorlil of the platform. A portion of this floor is offsetat one extremity of the platform below the main portion of the floor asillustrated at 15. Arranged upon the floor above the cross sill 13 isthe end y, board 16 of the gear housing. Seated upon the floor .toextend from the lower extremity of this end board is a bottom board 17at the outer extremity of which are arranged spaced upstanding posts18'` and 19 respectively joined at their upper extremities by a block20. Extending fro-m the post 19 and is the top board 21 of the gearhousing, this top board being arranged substantially parallel to thebottom board 17. Abutting the resting upon the upper edge of the'boardlend board 16 and resting against the side edges ofthe top and bottomboards of the gear housing are side boards 22 for the said housing. Theadjacent extremities of these side boards are rested against the sideedges of the post 19 and either one or both. of the said side boardsmaybe detachably mounted in position s0 that access may be easily had tothe interior of the gear housing. Extending beneath the floor 14 of theplatform directly under the bottom board 17 of the gear housing is across strip 23. This strip abuts at its extremities against the end sill11 and the cross sill 13. Securing one extremity of the strip is a boltor-other suitable fastening device 24 extending through the bottomboard'17 of the gear housing and through the Hoor 14.0f the platformwhile the oppocounter shaft 27. Arrangedupon one endy of this shaftbetween the posts 18 and 19 is a pinion 28 while the opposite extremityaf the. said shaft carries a bevel gear 29. Fitted through the upperextremities of the posts 18 and 19 are alined bearings in which ismounted a drive shaft 30 havin a crank 31 connected' to the outerextremity thereof. Fixed upon the drive shaft between the said posts isa gear wheel 32 meshing with the pinion 28 of the counter shaft 27.Accordingly, turning of the crank 31 will rotate the bevel gear 29.Connected to the opposite side edges of the posts 18 and 19 are, asparticularly shown in Fig. 1, gear housing members 33 abutting at theirlower extremities with ,the adjacent `end edges of the side boards 22`of the main gear housing.

Connected to opposite side edges of the top board 21 of the gear housingare segmental iioor boards 34 resting upon theupper edge of the endboard 16 of the said housing.

Mounted upon the said Hoor boards to seat against the said top board isa cylindrical casing 35 the bottom wall ofwh-ich is provided with anaxially arranged opening surrounded by an upsta'nding flange 36. Thiscasing may be secured in position in any approved manner and leadingfrom one side of the casing is a discharge spout 37. Closing theupperopen end of the casing is a frusto-conical lid 38 and opening throughthe apex of this lid is an air intake vpipe 39 which, when the lid isfitted upon the casing, projects into the said casing axially thereof.

Rotatably mounted within the casing is a cylindrical basket 40 of adiameter somewhat less than that of thenl casing. Atv its upperextremity the basket is vprovided with an overhanging flange 41 andformed through the cylindrical wall of the casing are a plurality ofopenings 42. Connected to the basket are a plurality of helicallyarranged blades 43. Theseblades are secured in any approved manner tothe outer side of the circumferential wall of the basket and extendbetween the top and bottom edges 'thereof with the said blades incliningdownwardly and extending circumferentially with respect to the basket.

Mounted upon the lower side of the .basket is a spider 44 the `arms ofwhich are secured to the bottom wall of the basket by bolts or othersuitable fastening devices. Extend-A Thisl the upper extremity of thesaid shaft is an annular collar 46 and set-into the top board 21 of thegear housing within the flange 36 of the casing is a thrust bearing 47of ap# proved design. This bearing is arranged to coperate with thecollar 46 for rotatably supporting the basket. Embedded in the bottomboard 17 of the gear casing is a split journal 48 shown inr detail inFig. 3 of the drawings and embedded in the top board 21 of the saidcasing is a similar split journal 50 shown in detail in Fig. 4.A These.journals rotatably receive the shaft 45 and threaded. through thebottom board to cooperate with the journal 48 isa set screw 51 while asimilar set screw 52 is threaded through the top board to coperate withthe journal 50.` As will be readily understood, theseset screws may beadjusted for tightening saidl journals about the shaft 45 and taking upwear upon the said journals as well as to counteract any lost motion orlateral play in the shaft.

Mounted upon thesupporting shaft 45 for the basket and arranged within,the gearv housing of the base'is a ratchet mechanism for rotating thebasket. This ratchet mechanism includes, as particularly shown in Fig.5, a bevel gear 53 loosely mounted upon the shaft 45 to coperate withthe bevel gear 29 of the counter. shaft 27. Opening through the bottomedge of the said bevel gear is a vertically disposed socket 54 which isinclined downwardly and radially with respect to the axis of rotation ofthe said gear. Slidably'itted in this socket is a pin or pawl 55.Mounted upon the shaft 45 to coperate with the said pinis a cam 56 fixedto the shaft by a screw or other suitable fastening device-57 andprovided at the summit of its inclined face with a vertical shoulder 58.

Tt will now be seen that when the crank 31 is vproperly operated, thebevel gear 53 will be rotated upon the shaftv 45 when the' pawl 55 willride over the cam face of the cam 56 and, as shown in Fig. 5, gravitateto a posithus continue to rotate independently of the s crank. Thisprovides a very simple and effective construction of ratchet mechanismfor rotating the basket and inf this connection attention,- is directedto thefact that the operation of the said mechanism will be practicallysilent. Furthermore, at-

tention is directed to the fact that since the paWl 55 is inclinedradially With re spect tothe axis of rotation'of the bevel geafr53,rotary movement of the said bevel gear will, by centrifugal action, tendto project the pawl out of the socket 54 to engage the shoulder of thecam 56. Any possibility of the sticking of the pa'wl willthus beovercome.

Detachably mounted upon the lower end of the lshaft of the basket is afriction disk or pulley 59. Partially surrounding this disk is a brakeband 60 secured at one end, as particularlys'hown'in Fig. 6 of thedrawings, to a block 61 mounted beneath the floor 14 of the platformadjacent to the said disk. The opposite extremity of this brake band isconnected to a lever 62 pivoted upon a hanger bracket 63 secured totheunderside of the floor 14 of the platform to span the' strip 23. Thebrake band 60 preferably extends the entire length of the inner edge ofthe said lever to provide a wear strip 64 therefor with the free end ofthe said strip bent around the outer extremity ofthe lever. Connected'atone end to the freeextremity of the lever is a spring 65 the oppositeend of which is secured by a screw or other suitable fastening device tothe adjacent sill 10 of the platform. s `will be clear, this springwill'normally act to pivot the lever 62 for expanding the brake band 60away from the friction disk 59. Mounted upon the floor 14 of theplatform above the free extremity of the lever 62 is a foot lever 66.This foot lever is pivotally mounted upon a lsuitable bracket secured tothe said Hoor and is provided` with an. angularly disposed arm 67projecting loosely through the floor of the platform in front of thefree extremity of.

the lever 62 to engage the wear` ,strip 63 thereof. v Accordingly, bydepressing the lever 64, the lever 62 will be moved to tighten the brakeband 60 about the disk 59 for controlling `the rotary movement of thebasket 40 or stopping the basket entirely.

Removably fitted upon the odset portion 15 of the floor 14 of theplatform is a `preferably rectangular condenser and container `68abutting'at one extremity with an upstanding posti-or strip 69 connectedto the said offset portion of the platform floor and held by a sideboard 7 0. This condenser is provided with an inclined vintake pipe 71having a fiange 7 2 formed thereon for receiving, as particularly shownin Fig. 2 ofthe drawings, a sleeVe'7 3 slidable upon the discharge spout37 of the casing 35. rlhe condenser is further provided with dischargepipe 74 having a flange 75 formedthereon to receive a sleeve 76 slidableupon the lower end of a vent flue 77. This flue is supported by the post69 and is connected thereto by-a suitable clip 78 embracing the flue. Atits vupper end, the flue 77 is provided with a laterally directedterminal to whichL may be connected an extension of the flue preferablyleading to some point-exteriorly of the building in which the deviceisarranged.

ln use, the clothes to be cleaned having been saturated with the propercleaning fluids, are placed within the basket 40. rlfhe basket is thenrotated by means of the crank 31 as previously described, when, bycentrifugal action, the said cleaning fiuids will be expelled from theclothes to flow through the openings 42 in the circumferential wall lofthe basket and bev discharged intor the casing 35. rIhe flange 36 uponthe bottom wall of the casing will prevent the fluids from flowing outthrough the opening receiving the shaft 45 of the basket so that the-delivered into the basket will then ow through the openings 42 thereinand be discharged out through the pipe 37 of the ca'sing into thecondenser.I Any currents of air within the casing striking the lid 38will be directed downwardly thereby around the inner end of the intakepipe 3 9 to thus create a further suction at the inner extremity of the'said pipe tending to draw in fresh air therefrom. rlhe purpose of theblades 43 is now therefore apparent. v

ysaid fluids will thus be discharged through y I rlhe air currentsentering the condenser 68 from the discharge spout 37 of the casing willbe laden with the vaporized' cleaning uids and it will be seenl that theflow of the Asaidair'current's will be somewhat retarded within thecondenser. Consequently, a portion of the evaporated fiuids will thus bedeposited within the condenser. Moreover, the said air currents uponcoming in contact with the cleaning fluids contained within thecondenser will be acted upon to condense the evaporated Huids carried bythe said air currents while fresh air entering through the v -currentsfrom the condenser.

5 The maj or portion of the cleaning Huds will thus be reclaimed withinthe condenser. However, to avoid the possibility of explosions, in anyinstance where highly volatile cleaning fluids are employed, the ventiiue 77 is provided to finally` carry ofi the air This arrangement willalso prevent the fouling of the room or place where the device is beingused. When desired the condenser may be removed by simply displacing thesleeves and 76.

Having'thus described the invention, what` is claimed as new is:

I l. A device ofthe character described including a casing provided inits bottom portion with adischarge opening, a basket rotatable withinthe casing and provided in the side wall thereof with a perforation, thebasket being open at its upper end, an intake pipe extending from'abovethe basket and downwardly inclinedyfan blade mounted upon the side wallof the basket torotate therewith, and means for rotating the basket tocause the said blade to set up an in- 'lowing current of airI downwardlythrough said spout into the basket to be drawn through the perforationtherein and expelled downwardly within the casing through the saiddischarge opening. v i

2. A device of the character described including aplatform having afloor formed with 'a lowered offset portion, a supporting structurerising from the platform, a casing carried by the said supportingstructure l and provided in the bottom portion thereof with a dischargespout, the casing being closed at its upper end, a basket rotatablewithin the casing, an intake pipevdepending into the casiig above thebasket and opening through e upper end of the casing, a i closedcondenser mounted upon the said lowered offset portion of the floorbeneath the casing and connected .with said discharge spout, a postrising from the platform at one end o the condenser, a vent flue for thecondenser supported by the said post, and ^means for rotating the basketwhereby to v,set upan inflowing 'current of air through '.45 the saidlintake pipe into the casing toy be directed through the said spout'intothe said receptacle. y

toward the upper open end thereof and open` ing through the casing, acircumferentially lijm/8,593

- 3. A device of the character described including a casing closed atits upper end, a closed vented condenser communicating with the bottoniportion of the casing, a basket rotatable within the casing', an' intakepipey through the closed upper end of openin the casing, and means forotatingthe basket whereby to'set up infiowing currents-of air throughthe said pipe, .through the' casing and through the condenser forchilling vapors within the condenser and Ventilating the condenser. i

4. A device of the character described including a casing` closed at itsupper end, .a closed condenser communicating with the bottom portion ofthe casing, a vent flue for the condenser, a basket rotatable within thecasing, an intake pipe opening through the closed uppery end of thecasing, and means for rotating the basket whereby to set up inflowingcurrents of air through the said pipe, through the casingthrough thecondenser and through said vent flue for chilling vapors within thecondenser and ventilating the condenser.

5. -A device of the character described including a casing closed at itsupper end, a closed vented receptacle connected with the bottom portionof the casing for receiving liquid therefrom,- a basket rotatable withinf the casing, an intake pipe opening through the closed upper end of thecasing, and means' for rotating the basket whereby to set up inflowingcurrents of, air through the said pipe, through the casing for expellingvapors therefrom into the condenser, and through the condenser forchilling such vapors withinthe condenser and yVentilating the condenser.

' In testimony -whereof we Iaiiix our sig-` lll@- natures. v s

CHARLESv EDWIN CLARK. WILLIAM MOORE CLARK, JONAS A. SPARKS.

